


Forsaken

by yunmin



Category: Bones (TV)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen, Partial Fix-It, Speculation, season 10
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-28
Updated: 2014-09-28
Packaged: 2018-02-19 03:47:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2373359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yunmin/pseuds/yunmin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Somehow, knowing that he is once again the only person in possession of the knowledge that he did not in fact murder anyone does not feel as relieving as Zack once thought it would be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Forsaken

Somehow, knowing that he is once again the only person in possession of the knowledge that he did not in fact murder anyone does not feel as relieving as Zack once thought it would be.

Possibly because what that statement really means is that Doctor Lance Sweets is dead.

And there isn't a reality in which that is a comforting thought.

He's not the first person at the Jeffersonian killed in the line of duty. He probably won't be the last. At the FBI, he will be praised and commended and put into a long list of agents who have given their lives in service of their country; to uphold the FBI motto.

Fidelity. Bravery. Integrity.

(The last is now a moot point. Zack knows that much of what has been going on. There is no integrity among the upper echelons of the FBI, who send foot soldiers out to fight a war that cannot, will not be won.)

Zack had sworn Sweets to secrecy on that night many years ago. They haven't spoken of it since, but Zack knows Sweets has never forgotten. Once a year, as near to the date as Sweets can make it, he comes in for Zack's annual assessment. And at the end of the session, he always asks: “Is there anything you want me to tell Dr. Brennan and Agent Booth?”

The unspoken question has always been, are you ready for your friends to know that you didn't actually plunge a knife into that man's chest?

Zack has never been brave enough to answer yes. But each year it takes a little longer to say no. As the months tick past, and he realises what it means to be trapped in here for the rest of his life, he spends time thinking over what might happen if he did tell everyone.

Ultimately, he can never know. But considering he has now served six years in this institution, he has paid a certain debt to society. His hands have healed to an extent; physical therapy has restored more function than anyone initially thought possible. He will never work as a forensic anthropologist again, but other career paths remain open to him, if he could see a life outside the institution.

If Zack analyses all the factors involved, the only logical conclusion is that he would have said yes in the end.

And now he will never get that chance. Because the person conducting his review this year will not know him the same way Sweets does; they will be a faceless bureaucrat, with no vested interest in Zack. They will not know that Zack is not as guilty as the list of crimes he has committed makes him out to be.

All because a man beat Sweets to death.

Zack is not selfish enough to think he is the one most affected by Sweets' death. The absence of the man will be felt by many, not least of all his girlfriend and their unborn child. That is the real tragedy here, that the child will grow up without knowing his father. Zack's loss pales in comparison to the hole that has been torn into that child's life.

He lies back on the small cot provided in the corner of his cell. There is no use thinking about it now.

He is once again alone. A fact that could explain most of his adult life, if not the entirety of it in some way or another. There was never a miracle coming. To expect one would be to ignore all rational fact in the universe.

.

Across town, Agent James Aubrey has the unfortunate task of doing the preliminary sort through Sweets' files. He does not know that amongst the dozens of patient files, the one of Zack Addy is anything special. Neither does he know about the false bottom in Sweets' desk drawer, which contains Zack Addy's real file. The one which includes the information that he is not a murderer.

Perhaps it is luck, or maybe fate that Aubrey decides to double check the desk drawers. To take them out, in case there is anything in there that is personal, mementoes for Daisy to pass on to their son. A dozen pens, a couple of photos. A rubber duck, and a battered tape which can't have been played in years but is nevertheless well loved.

There is definitely magic in the air when the drawer seems to leap off the desk and crash onto the floor. Aubrey curses. But the shock has dislodged a file from that false bottom, and one of the reports has flown across the room. And as Aubrey reads it, his eyes go wide.

“Agent Booth,” he calls. “You gotta read this.”

**Author's Note:**

> Mulling over Sweets' death, it came to me that it also meant that there was now no one who knew Zack was innocent. Little did I know that Eric Millegan came to the same conclusion on twitter. I somehow doubt that they'll actually bring it up, but somehow the (I think it's now debunked) rumour that he would be in 10x03 doesn't look as wildly implausible as it once did. This fic is also on [tumblr.](http://drinkupthesunrise.tumblr.com/post/98655279136/forsaken-also-on-ao3-post-10x01-so-spoilers-for)


End file.
